Head to head
Foursquare Places vs OpenCage
As a maps & geocoding API, Foursquare Places rates higher on the APIbenchmarks Index, 77.4 to 74.8, a 2.6-point gap. Here is how they compare on each criterion.
Criterion by criterion
| Criterion | Foursquare Places | OpenCage |
|---|---|---|
| Documentation & DX | ||
| Reliability | ||
| Ecosystem & SDKs | ||
| Accessibility | ||
| APIbenchmarks Index | 77.4 | 74.8 |
Specifications
| Foursquare Places | OpenCage | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Places/POI search & geotagging | Pure forward/reverse geocoding |
| Free tier | $200/mo credit + 500 free Pro calls | 2,500 req/day (free trial) |
| Pricing | Per call (volume-based) | Per day req tier (subscription) |
| Official SDKs | 9 languages | 12 languages |
Is Foursquare Places better than OpenCage?
On the APIbenchmarks Index, Foursquare Places rates higher (77.4 vs 74.8). It leads on the four weighted criteria, but price is reported separately, so the best choice still depends on your budget.
Verdict in one line
Foursquare Places leads by 2.6 points (77.4 vs 74.8) and wins 2 of 4 criteria; OpenCage wins 2.
Winner by criterion
| Criterion | Winner | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Documentation & DX | 78 | 80 | |
| Reliability | 80 | 65 | |
| Ecosystem & SDKs | 68 | 62 | |
| Accessibility | 85 | 95 |
Choose Foursquare Places if… / choose OpenCage if…
- →reliability matters most to you (80 vs 65)
- →ecosystem & sdks matters most to you (68 vs 62)
- →your use case matches its focus: places/poi search & geotagging
- →documentation & dx matters most to you (80 vs 78)
- →accessibility matters most to you (95 vs 85)
- →you need broad SDK coverage (12 official SDKs vs 9)
- →your use case matches its focus: pure forward/reverse geocoding
Pricing side by side
- Model
- Per call (volume-based)
- Free tier
- $200/mo credit + 500 free Pro calls
- Free (Sandbox)$0
- Pro Endpoints (pay-as-you-go)$15.00 CPM (per 1,000)
- Premium Endpoints (pay-as-you-go)$18.75 CPM (per 1,000)
- Ask API$30.00 CPM (Pro) / $36.00 CPM (Premium)
- EnterpriseCustom
- FSQ OS Places (open dataset)Free (Apache 2.0)
- Model
- Per day req tier (subscription)
- Free tier
- 2,500 req/day (free trial)
- Free Trial€0
- X-Small€45/mo
- Small€110/mo
- Medium€450/mo
- Large€900/mo
- Enterprise€1,800+/mo
Vendor-published pricing, verified 2026-06-27 (Foursquare Places) and 2026-06-27 (OpenCage).
SDK and language coverage
Both · 1
Python (API samples, bulk harmonization)
Only Foursquare Places · 8
iOS / Swift (Places & Movement SDK)Android (Places & Movement SDK)React NativeJavaScript / web (Address Autofill, Web Place Search samples)REST / HTTP (v3 API)Postman collectionModel Context Protocol (official foursquare-places-mcp server)Apache Spark (FSQ OS Places dataset access)
Only OpenCage · 11
Node.js / JavaScriptJavaPHPRubyPerlMATLABCommand-line (CLI)Leaflet pluginMCP serverGo (community)Rust (community)
Strengths and weaknesses
- +Deep, structured venue data: 100M+ POIs with a 1,500+ category taxonomy, stable category IDs, attributes, hours, and user-generated tips/photos
- +Explicitly Google-independent POI source, appeals to companies that compete with Google or want to avoid Maps Platform lock-in
- +Transparent pay-as-you-go CPM pricing with a 10,000-call/month free Pro tier and no card required to start
- –Restrictive, revocable API data license, data generally can't be stored, merged, or redistributed outside your application
- –Coverage and freshness can trail Google outside dense urban / US / Western markets, and tip/photo depth varies
- –Premium endpoints (tips, photos, ratings) have no free tier and start at $18.75 per 1,000 calls
- +Permissive open-data license: store and reuse geocoding results forever, even after cancelling, unlike Google/Mapbox
- +Predictable flat-rate pricing with soft daily limits (no surge charges or hard cut-offs for subscribers)
- +Single endpoint returns rich annotations: timezone, currency, calling code, sunrise/sunset, what3words, MGRS, confidence score
- –Pure geocoding only, no routing, distance matrix, map tiles, or rich place search
- –Coverage and accuracy thin in developing regions where OpenStreetMap data is sparse
- –Fixed subscription tiers rather than true granular pay-as-you-go billing
Foursquare Places vs OpenCage: questions
- Which has better documentation, Foursquare Places or OpenCage?
- OpenCage scores higher on documentation and developer experience: 80 vs 78 out of 100.
- Which is more reliable, Foursquare Places or OpenCage?
- Foursquare Places scores higher on reliability: 80 vs 65 out of 100.
- Do Foursquare Places and OpenCage have a free tier?
- Foursquare Places: yes ($200/mo credit + 500 free Pro calls). OpenCage: yes (2,500 req/day (free trial)).
- How are Foursquare Places and OpenCage priced?
- Foursquare Places: Per call (volume-based). OpenCage: Per day req tier (subscription).
- Which has more official SDKs?
- OpenCage lists 12 official SDKs, Foursquare Places lists 9.